Can't blow it by everyone

[knightsb]

DD got her first taste this weekend of a team she couldn't over power. DD has good speed and does well hitting her spots. Yesterday in bracket play she ran into the perfect storm... PU calling a tight strike zone, and a group of talented and patient hitters. There was no place for her to hide. I told her the day would come, where she wouldn't be able to simply blow it by good hitters. The team she faced was an out of state team, not part of the usual suspects and a team we had never seen or faced before. DD has been working on her CU, but she does not fully commit to that pitch when thrown and the results are inconsistent. Late in the game, last inning, we were tied, the number 4 hitter, big girl probably pushing 200lbs comes to the plate, DD got her to foul the first two pitches off, so she was ahead 0-2. Next pitch fastball low and outside, ball. Next, CU in the dirt, ball. Next FB low and inside, ball. Full count 3-2, DD didn't want to give up a walk, challenges her with heat, right down the middle... the result a 215 ft shot over the left center fence. DDs first ever HR given up. This really rattled her and the defense. She walked the next batter before gaining her composure. They finally got out of the inning, but the damage was done and they were not able to come back. The opposing team went on to win the tournament, won 6-0, and 13-0 in the semis and finals. DD wanted to cry when she came back to the dugout. You can tell the way her chin quivers and face gets flush. I felt so sorry for her at that moment. I could read her lips as she looked at me, "Dad, I let the team down". On the ride home, she didn't want to talk too much about the game. Later in the evening mom and I told her she could pick where we ate dinner, as usual she chose Panda Express; I hate that place, but grinned and off we went. DD was in better spirits after her orange chicken and said, "Dad, I need to work on my CU". I smiled and said, I am ready when you are.

 

[PEPPERS]

The same thing happen to my daughter when she was 12 (played 14U), she ran into a great team she would get 2 quick strikes on the hitters and then they would foul balls off until she made a mistake, we lost something like 15-2. She had a good change back then, but they would wait on it and hit it hard. That is when I decided to get her with a coach who could teach the cure, rise, drop and etc. She can still come with the heat, but throws most breaking balls now.

Back then she would work herself to death, now with breaking pitches, may times throws 8-4 pitches per inning and were back on offence.

 

[halskinner]

Speed kills

I dont care if you throw 80mph. If that's all you have, you have nothing, good hitters will adjust and pound it. They will adjust to a change up too and wait for it.

Speed is a weapon and it is ONLY a weapon in the pitchers arsenal. IT HAS TO BE USED INTELLIGENTLY to be very effective. A pitcher that only has 2 speeds is going to get pounded by a good team.

If you can throw at 3 different speeds (fast, slow and off-speed) and you never let them know what speed THIS pitch is coming in at, you will dominate most teams. Why? Simple, if every wind up says 'Fast pitch' but the release can be either fast, slow or off-speed, they have only one choice to decide what speed THIS pitch is coming in at. They must watch the ball travel from the pitcher's hand to SEE how fast it is going. THAT TAKES TIME THE BATTERS DO NOT HAVE!

Using three speeds and bouncing back and forth constantly will destroy most line ups of hitters. They can adjust to many things but NOT to having only 1/3 their normal time to react

Again, the wind up must always appear to be a fast pitch, it must be practiced and very deceptive.

 

[Coach JV]

Hal-thanks for touching on the importance of a consistent wind-up.
We run across pitchers whose change up is given away before the ball
leaves her hand

 

[GOINGDEEP]

I dont care if you throw 80mph. If that's all you have, you have nothing, good hitters will adjust and pound it. They will adjust to a change up too and wait for it.

Speed is a weapon and it is ONLY a weapon in the pitchers arsenal. IT HAS TO BE USED INTELLIGENTLY to be very effective. A pitcher that only has 2 speeds is going to get pounded by a good team.

If you can throw at 3 different speeds (fast, slow and off-speed) and you never let them know what speed THIS pitch is coming in at, you will dominate most teams. Why? Simple, if every wind up says 'Fast pitch' but the release can be either fast, slow or off-speed, they have only one choice to decide what speed THIS pitch is coming in at. They must watch the ball travel from the pitcher's hand to SEE how fast it is going. THAT TAKES TIME THE BATTERS DO NOT HAVE!

Using three speeds and bouncing back and forth constantly will destroy most line ups of hitters. They can adjust to many things but NOT to having only 1/3 their normal time to react

Again, the wind up must always appear to be a fast pitch, it must be practiced and very deceptive.

Very nice post Hal. Around here we call this the "triple kill". Sure you will have more bat contact than a 12 inch breaking ball, but usually the hit is weak if not foul.

 

[halskinner]

I just came from a tournament and only one pitcher I saw mixed speeds. So it is a pipe dream still. It is coaches who are calling the pitches.

Lots of curves, drops, screws and rises, but all the same speed. The one pitcher had a straight change.

It is either hard for the student to learn or no one is teaching it or the coaches are not up to calling it. I do think that it might be a college level skill, such as Lawrie's slow drop.

Unfortunately, with probably MOST male coaches the only thing they know is fast pitch, faster and faster than that, the baseball mentallity. Thats why I stressed "Intelligently". When it comes to teaching it and calling it, most of them fall a little short of that mark.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Unfortunately, with probably MOST male coaches the only thing they know is fast pitch, faster and faster than that, the baseball mentallity. Thats why I stressed "Intelligently". When it comes to teaching it and calling it, most of them fall a little short of that mark.

Umm, isn't that 3 different speeds?! Seriously though, I don't understand why, at the advanced levels, that some coaches don't want to throw fast balls. They reason that it might get hit. Well, fact of the matter is that any pitch thrown might get hit by a good hitter! If you eliminate the FB entirely, that's one less speed that the pitcher has to disrupt the batters' timing and the effectiveness of their other pitches is reduce. Why do MLB pitchers still throw fast balls? Why is this logic flawed for FP?

 

[EP Dad]

You can throw 3 speeds or you can just throw a riseball like Escobedo. She only needed one pitch.

 

[Greenmonsters]

Any fastball thoughts Hal?

 

[Coach JV]

My dd off speed is a screw ball
Fastball is 55ish
Changeup is 40ish
screw is 48-49is